#natasha romanoff friendship

[fxckmiup]

𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐩𝐭. 𝟒

Genre: ♡ Fluff | ♤ Angst | ♞ Hurt/Comfort

Warnings: Unrequited/requited love, yelling, mean Wanda, mean Yelena, if there's anything else please let me know.

Pairing: AU Wanda Maximoff x Fem!Reader

Summary: Nothing hurts more than falling in love with your best friend.

Words: 6,395

PS. I've tagged everyone on my taglist but most of y'all can't be tagged.

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Wanda Maximoff

"What do you mean she left?" Wanda asks Yelena who stepped past her sister and Steve to get closer to the brunette.

"She left because of you," the younger Russian repeats with venom laced in her tone. Bucky gets up from his spot on the couch and steps in front of Yelena to stop her from coming any closer to Wanda.

"Yelena, don't," Bucky warns to which the blonde scoffs at. "Don't what? Tell her the truth? Because that played out well so far, didn't it?"

"You know it isn't just about her. You're looking for someone to blame and maybe she's partially at fault but it doesn't mean you get to dump all your resentment towards her," Bucky tells her. If it was anybody else who dare speak to her in such a way, they probably would have gotten a slap right across the face. But it was Bucky, who was the only person besides Natasha and Y/n who she allowed to speak to her in such a way.

Yelena rolls her eyes before crossing her arms over her chest, looking up at the man who's standing in her way to rip the Sokovian a new one and if he thinks he can stop her then he's a fool.

"My resentment towards a certain Sokovian in this room isn't just about today. It's about everything she's done, directly or indirectly to Y/n in the last year. If Kate, who's the most oblivious out of all of us, can pick out the number of times Y/n got hurt by the Sokovian then Wanda should at least know that her actions towards her so-called best friend were impacting her in a negative way. And ultimately, if Y/n was to listen to anyone telling her to stay it would have been Wanda she'd listen to but Wanda did the opposite, didn't she? She pushed and prodded Y/n so much that Y/n felt as if this was the best decision for all parties. So no. I will not spare Wanda Maximoff my damn resentment because she deserves it." Yelena lays out as if the brunette wasn't in the same room as her.

Yelena sidesteps Bucky and walks up to Wanda getting up to her face, to which the brunette didn't stand back from.

"You're a fool," Wanda swallows at Yelena's bitter quiet but strong words. "And I don't know what she ever saw in you," Yelena tried to walk past her with an aggressive bump of their shoulders but Wanda grabs Yelena's bicep tightly before she can walk further.

The room goes eary quiet and no one knows what to say. Yelena glances at Wanda's grip and Natasha takes a cautious step toward the two while the rest watch in anticipation of what's to come next.

Wanda's mind is reeling. Y/n left. She's gone and she didn't even get a proper goodbye. Just like that, she disappeared into thin air.

"A walk? Anyone?" Kate suddenly throws out in the air after fidgeting uncomfortably through the silence.

"Get your hand off of me," Yelena dangerously warns Wanda but the brunette only stares at the side of her face. After a long few seconds of nothing, Natasha takes another step closer after noticing Yelena fisting her hands.

"You're wrong," Wanda spits out evenly in a low tone but clear enough for everyone to pick up on while she lets go of Yelena's arm.

"Oh yeah? About what?" Yelena turns around to come face to face with the brunette once again.

"She wouldn't have listened to me," Wanda shrugs nonchalantly but it was clear in her face that she was only trying to hide her anger.

"You're more stupider than I thought," Yelena throws out shaking her head in disbelief.

"And why is that, Yelena? You're here all up on my face, but you truly don't know shit," Wanda spits out, accenting her remark with a slight head tilt.

"If I were you, I'd shut up," Yelena growls at the brunette as she closes the gap between them, chest touching, nose flaring, and eyes sending daggers to the other. "Years, Wanda. Years she had to sit back in pain watching you. Years of her sacrificing everything for you. Years of making sure you were always happy. Years of putting you before her. And how did you pay her back? How did you show her your appreciation? By forgetting your traditions? Traditions that y'all have done for years. Traditions that Y/n made sure she was to never miss, cancelling everything and everyone just to make sure she made it to you."

Yelena takes another harsh step forward resulting in her chest pushing Wanda back a few steps but this display of aggression didn't falter Wanda's stance. "You forgot her at the roof. You forgot your brunch dates. You forgot Y/n's second birthday," now that last one knocked Wanda's breath out of her chest.

"She got you that stupid fucking dark hold book. She saved up her paycheques to make sure she got you that damn book but she sacrificed all that and gave Vision the credit because why? Because she wanted to see that stupid ass smile on your face. And after all that, you still continue to forget about her. You're a selfish asshole who doesn't care about anything and anyone around her but herself. She fucking worshipped where you fucking walked and you choose to continue to be oblivious, making out with your stupid little boyfriend in front of her whenever you can. She wanted to get away from you! It's because of you why she fucking left!" Yelena yells bringing her hands up to push the sokovian's shoulders back and at this point everyone was on their feet, ready to stop a fight from happening.

To everyone's surprise, Wanda catches both Yelena's wrists before she got pushed back and she ends up pushing the younger Russian back instead. "You think you know shit?!" Wanda yells and as if the tables were turned, it was now the brunette who charges forward the Russian.

"Okay miss knows it all, did you fucking know that I did confess my feelings to her this morning?!" Wanda throws out and the revelation earns a gasp from anyone. "Did you know that she claims that she fucking loves me back but when I asked her to stay and she still chose to fucking leave?!"

Yelena shakes her head in denial with a frown on her face, "Y/n wouldn't have said no to you."

"Well, then I guess you don't know Y/n as well as you thought you do, huh?" Wanda chuckles dryly, "all this time you thought she'd sacrifice it for me? All this time you thought she'd pick me, yet here she is, gone after I confessed to her that I'm fucking in love with her. I offered to go with her Yelena and she fucking told me no. She told me she didn't want me."

Wanda steps up to Yelena's face, "get it through your head that Y/n didn't choose me. Get it through your head that Y/n still chose to leave."

Yelena being Yelena, always wanting to get the last word in, doesn't back down. With an all-calm voice, Yelena says, "in that case, good for her. She's finally putting herself before you after years of putting you before her. It's time you do the same."

...

Wanda comes stumbling through her door at half past 2 am, "fuck you, fuck you, I hate you. I never want to see you ever again Y/n," the brunette yells to her phone.

"That's enough," Natasha says making herself known to the brunette who jumps at her voice. "Who let you in here?" Wanda asks confused as she slams her front door with her back, leaning on it for support right after. Natasha wonders for a second how this Sokovian hasn't gotten any noise complaints from her neighbours, as this scene has happened almost every day since Y/n left three weeks ago.

"I have a spare key to your apartment remember?" Natasha lightly reminds her, knowing that Wanda probably won't even remember this by the morning as she complains about a killer hangover.

Natasha walks over to the nearly blacked-out drunk brunette before quickly taking her phone and hanging up on Y/n. "Hey! I wasn't done yelling at her," Wanda yells as she tries reaching for her phone only to stumble forward and if it weren't for Natasha catching her, she would have planted face first to the ground resulting in an ugly bruise on her face.

"Yeah well, I said you're done. Bed," Natasha orders while she helps the brunette to her room. "You know that key was only for emergencies," Wanda mumbles and stumbles to her room despite Natasha's support.

"And you being out past 1 am a Wednesday getting close to blacked-out drunk is an emergency. This can't go on for any longer Wanda, this is unhealthy." Natasha reprimands her.

"Blame your sister for kissing me, leaving me, and breaking my heart," Wanda says before she falls on her bed and not even a second later knocks out. Natasha grumbles before she starts helping Wanda into comfier clothing.

...

"Where is Wanda?" Sam asks the group whilst starting the hand out of barbequed hotdogs to the group for their monthly friends' reunion.

"Late as per usual," Yelena mumbles as she squirts hot sauce all over her hotdog.

"Have you talked to her?" Bucky asks. "No."

"Yelena it's been months since y'all went at it with each other. You should just sit and talk because this is getting ridiculous," Bucky scolds her.

"Well then she can come to me and talk if she wants to talk," Yelena says as she rolls her eyes while Natasha shakes her head at her younger sister.

"You know she won't do that. Plus, what you did was uncalled for," Steve comments fitting the description of being the peacekeeper of the group.

"She asked for it," Yelena shrugs which earns a glare from the peacekeeper himself and before Steve can answer, Sam's front door opens revealing Wanda.

"Holy shit, what did you do?" Tony asks loudly which gets everyone's attention. Wanda shrugs "what's the rite of passage?" Wanda asks Sam who's hosting this month's reunion. "Jello-shot," he smiles cheekily before Wanda takes one of the cups and quickly downs it making a face once she tastes the straight Jello tequila.

"You dyed your hair red? Why?" Tony asks. "What you don't like it?" Wanda tilts her head with the question but Tony chooses stupid this time around and answers her rhetorical question. "No, I don't."

"Don't anger the beast," Sam says through a cough before walking away which makes Wanda rolls her eyes in annoyance.

That's Wanda for you who's been acting out since Y/n left a few months ago. The former brunette is now easily annoyed, easily angered, short fuse, and simply does not give a fuck about anything and anybody else.

"How's your dream job?" Steve asks instead, sensing the clear annoyance of the newly red-headed Sokovian. "Well it's my dream job, so I'm loving it a lot," Wanda says half sarcastically but sighs when she notices Steve's genuine curiosity. "It's going great, my manager is amazing, my colleagues are great, the company is great, and I'm truly having fun."

"That's what I like to hear," Pietro comments suddenly coming out of nowhere and ruffling up her nicely done hair which then earns him a big ole slap on the arm.

"So are you late from your pussy appointment?" Yelena says from the balcony door. "You know Yelena, maybe you need to schedule some sex appointment for yourself. I know people and you seem like you need to get laid," Wanda shoots out.

That's another thing Wanda started doing after Y/n left, one-night stands. It's almost rare for Wanda to get through a whole week without at least having two one-night stands. And no matter how many times she got scolded by her friends, she continues to do it to the point that no one says anything anymore.

"Yelena," Bucky says as a warning when he sees the blonde about to make another remark. Instead the Russian rolls her eyes at Bucky before stepping out the balcony to tend to the barbeque that was still cooking.

Natasha shakes her head at the two, something she's been doing a lot lately. "You two need to sort your shit out with each other. It's getting old," she comments as she passes the Sokovian on her way to the kitchen.

"Enough of that, shots anyone?" Tony yells through the apartment.

"Can I do a chaser?" Kate asks and Clint pats her back with a chuckle, "oh Kate."

"Is that a yes?" Kate stutters out.

...

A few weeks passed since the last friends' reunion and Wanda is currently doing a deep clean of her apartment when she comes across an envelope underneath her bed. She furrows her eyebrows wondering what could be inside the envelope, she turns it over to come face to face with her name nicely written on the front of the envelope.

She freezes immediately knowing whose penmanship that was from. Her frown grows trying to remember when she could have possibly received a letter from Y/n and as she was about to open the envelope, a knock comes booming on her front door. She jumps at the sound and drops the envelope to the ground.

She picks up the envelope contemplating if she should throw it out or actually open it but before she can even make a decision another set of knocks comes through her front door.

"I'm coming!" she yells out before quickly placing the envelope on her bedside table. She makes her way to the door and looks through the peephole only to come face to face with one of the people she did not expect to be standing in front of her door.

Wanda opens the door with a puzzled look on her face, "Yelena?"

"Hi."

...

Y/n Y/l/n

Y/n sighs heavily once she steps through her front door, she drops her purse and keys on the table by the door before locking it behind her. Her first week at her job was a whirlwind of many emotions and she's starting to think that maybe she should start investing in a therapist.

Y/n was absolutely thrilled to be starting her dream job but it was hard for her to celebrate that win with how everything went down back home. A part of her feels guilty for leaving her friends, scratch that, her family and she's honestly been feeling some intense waves of homesickness but that's something she'd never tell her friends since she feels she doesn't have the right to feel those.

Then let's not mention how everything with Wanda had gone down. That was not how she planned to tell the Sokovian of her feelings and she feels like a dick for not further explaining herself. But then again, the letter that she had left for the Sokovian should explain everything going through her head, that's if Wanda reads it.

On top of that, Sam had face-timed her the day after she landed to tell her what had gone down at the party after she left. He told her how Wanda and Yelena went at it and how everyone was sure someone was walking away with some sort of injury, but gladly no one did.

Y/n wanted to call Yelena or Natasha right after that but she felt that maybe, letting them call her when they were ready is a better option. She's sure that the sisters are probably upset with her for not telling them about the revelation that had happened between her and Wanda that day. So ultimately, she decided that she'll let them cool off and wait till they call her instead.

A week later, Y/n finally gets a facetime call from Yelena. Y/n reaches over to mute her TV while answering the facetime call, "hello sestra," Y/n answers with a smile.

"I'm mad at you," Yelena says and Y/n's smirk grows a little, "I know that you are."

"Well I was, I'm over it now," Yelena deflates with a pout. "Although now that I'm not mad, I'm hurt that you didn't tell me."

Y/n sighs a little and takes a sip of her red wine, "I'm sorry Yelena. There was so much going on in my head that day, you knew that. Plus, whatever happened between Wanda and I was not my intention at all. I went there and before I can even try to confess about my leave, she blurted out about her feelings and then I followed after," she explains scratching her eyebrows.

"She started kissing me but I had to cut it off to tell her about the job. And it was just all shitty. And everyone was sad, and I was sad, and I knew that if I let myself process and feel everything, there would be a great chance of me not following through with my decision. So it was poker face until I was up in the air where I didn't have the chance to turn around."

Y/n bites her lips looking at Yelena softly, "I'm sorry that I didn't have it in me to tell you or Natasha. To be honest with you, I'm just coming around to accepting and understanding what actually went down that day."

"Hey, it's okay. I completely understand that. I don't blame you really, but a heads up would have been nice," Yelena mutters the last part but Y/n still heard it and started laughing. "Heads up before you ripped her apart at the party?"

Yelena groans, "she was asking for it! And she just pushed all the right buttons so it all came out. It's fine, I still got the last words." Y/n chuckles at that, "of course you did. Where's Nat?"

"She's at work. She'll be home in half an hour, don't worry, she's not mad at you anymore."

"Oh thank god for that."

...

"You know what, I'm glad you aren't here. I'm glad you left. I never want to fucking see you again, you're parents were right about you, you know?! I can't believe I spent so many years trying to tell you otherwise when they were right all along!" Wanda yells through the phone and Y/n stares at the phone on the coffee table, that's been left on speaker.

This was the third week into Y/n moving away and these types of calls happened almost every night. Y/n knows that she could easily ignore it and not pick it up, but it's Wanda, how can she not? So she sits through a 30-minute to an hour-long phone call every night where Wanda just yells at her. Y/n can tell how drunk Wanda really is during every phone call, she's 99.9% sure that Wanda has never called her sober these last few weeks. It makes Y/n question if the brunette even remembers these phone calls.

Y/n can hear Wanda stumbling through a door, "fuck you, fuck you, I hate you. I never want to see you ever again Y/n," the brunette yells to her phone yet again.

"That's enough," she hears Natasha say and she can only guess how surprised the brunette was. "Who let you in here?" Wanda asks seemingly confused as Y/n hears the door slam shut. At least Y/n can now relax a bit knowing Wanda made it home safely.

"I have a spare key to your apartment remember?" Natasha lightly reminds her. Y/n hears some shuffling on the other side of the phone before the line cuts off. Y/n turns on her back, staring up at the ceiling and letting out a loud sigh.

Y/n almost booked a flight ticket after the third drunken call Wanda made to her, she was ready to come back and make this all better knowing that she could. But she thought about the real deep reasoning as to why she even took this job in the first place.

It was never about the title or the company and it was never about anything anyone ever guessed. Y/n took the job to prove her parents wrong. Y/n moved across the country to prove to herself that what was engraved in her mind was never true and it would never be her reality. Wanda had helped Y/n all these years to start believing that she was not what her parents told her she was. But now hearing Wanda say that she believed her parents were right all along was a massive knife struck through her heart.

This proves to her that she was never enough for Wanda and she definitely would never be if she had decided to stay in New York. Y/n took the opportunity to turn her life around and prove to everyone, her parents, herself, and especially Wanda, that she can do it. She can reach more than the limitations her parents had put around her, she's enough, and she's worth it.

...

"Boo!" Y/n yells and clutches her chest while she shuts her eyes tightly. She can hear muffled laughing in front of her from a pair of familiar-sounding voices. Y/n tries to get her breathing in a normal pattern once again but the stressful week she just had at work did not help.

All she wanted to do was to come home, have a glass, or two, or maybe a full bottle of wine while she binges on Friends. But from the sound of it, that won't be happening tonight.

She opens her eyes and sends daggers at the two people who almost caused her to have a heart attack. Y/n closes her front door behind her and locks it before throwing her keys toward the two who were on the ground dying of laughter, "you idiots!"

"You should have seen your face," Yelena laughs out loud while Pietro nods in agreement. "Damn it, why didn't we record that," add Yelena who was laying on the floor wiping her tears.

"Actually, I'm smarter than you so I did record it and it will be sent to the group chat ASAP," Pietro smirks over at Yelena and Y/n only groans in response. "Don't you dare send that, I swear to god," Y/n threatens while she puts her purse down and takes her shoes and coat off.

"What? You're going to yell like you just did?" Pietro mocks and it sends Yelena into another fit of laughter. "Ha ha ha, you're so funny really. I'm dying," Y/n deadpans.

"What are you two doing here anyway? And how the hell did you even get in my apartment?" Y/n asks while making her way to the kitchen to check what she can make for dinner.

"We have our ways. Plus, we're here because it's been 6 months since we last saw you and from the looks of it, you weren't going to initiate inviting us over so we took matters into our own hands," Yelena explains smugly making Y/n roll her eyes while trying to refrain from smiling at her friend's thoughtfulness.

"A heads up would have been nice," Y/n says in faux annoyance. "Well then it wouldn't be a surprise and we wouldn't have caught that amazing video," Pietro throws back.

...

"Dang, that was so good. Since when did you get good at cooking?" Pietro says before he slouches back on his chair, chewing his last bite. Y/n chuckles as she wipes her mouth with a napkin, "how rude. I've always been good at cooking. But I guess I really started branching out with my cooking here. There's really nothing else I can do so," Y/n finishes with a shrug right before she picks up her glass of wine.

"Which by the way, you never talk about. So how is it really? Do you like it here? Do you see yourself staying here?" Yelena asks, now turning her full attention on her sister-like best friend.

Y/n swallows her wine as well as the nerves that those questions brought her. This was something she's been heavily thinking about for the last months. Was this a place she want to be growing old in? She made a couple of friends from work but this place never made her feel at home the way New York did. Y/n felt as if she was truly only here for work and nothing else. She comes home, makes dinner, relaxes, showers, then bed, and this has been her routine since day one.

Y/n's half-year check-in with her bosses is coming up and so this has been something that she's been asking herself. But as much as she wants to be as truthful as she can be with her friends and family, she knows that she has to pick and choose her words carefully because it's detrimental that she makes this decision on her own.

"I mean, it doesn't feel like back home. I'll tell you that," she chuckles dryly. Her cryptic response makes Yelena narrow her eyes at her, "care to elaborate?" the blonde Russian tries.

"New York is home, it always was and it will always be, you know?" Y/n shrugs swallowing her emotions down, "I don't know anyone here, my friends and my family are back home. It still needs some time getting used to."

"So why not go back home?" Y/n sends Yelena a pointed look before getting up and gathering their plates together. "No, I'm serious. If you feel like you have a horrible life here, then why not just go back home? You have 6 months of experience in this position under your belt, I'm sure it'll be easy for you to get the same position with another amazing company that could possibly be in New York." Pietro was the one who sends Yelena a look this time around.

"First, I never said my life was horrible here. Second, it's not that easy," Y/n replies as she busies herself with filling up the dishwasher.

"How can it not be that-" Yelena tries but Y/n cuts her off sharply, "Yelena. Are you here to pester me about this or are you here to spend some true time with me?"

Yelena sighs almost guiltily, "the latter."

"So drop it."

...

"Oh my god, Yelena," Y/n groans as she drops her body on the couch while the blonde whines for a second before knocking out. Pietro laughs behind them while he shakes his head, "Miss Yel over here thinking she can outdrink us both. Ridiculous."

"I told you not to challenge her, idiot," Y/n says as she starts taking Yelena's shoes off and Pietro passes her some sweats for Y/n to change the Russian into. Pietro shrugs before turning around to give the two some privacy, "that's what she gets for challenging me first."

Y/n can't help but chuckle lightly, remembering how Yelena went all up on their faces saying she can outdrink them both combined, "you're so mean."

"This might be a wake-up call for Miss Yel," Pietro jabs again before going into the bathroom to change and get ready for bed himself.

It was the end of the first week of their vacation and Y/n felt bad that she had been way too busy during the week with work that she couldn't take them out anywhere. Therefore, Y/n decided that a night out in the city this Saturday would be nice and it'll be her way to finally show the two around her current city.

Natasha had called them in the middle of the week right before she purchased her plane ticket to come to Seattle for the remainder of Yelena's and Pietro's stay. The redhead told them that she was too jealous of the thought of the two being with Y/n so she impulsively asked for a week off of work to come and visit, then she'll come to fly back to NYC with Thing 1 and Thing 2.

The redheaded Russian will be landing tomorrow, Sunday, and Y/n only hopes that Yelena does not have a nasty hangover in the morning since they all have to wake up at 6 am to pick up Natasha from the airport. Although, they can always leave Yelena to sleep while they pick up Natasha.

Y/n is truly considering leaving the two at home while she goes and picks up her other Russian sister, maybe a time alone with them two would be nice, Yelena surely needs more time to rest. And that was the plan of action she decided on right before she floated to dreamland.

The next morning, Y/n slips out of her apartment at 5:45 am without waking anybody else up. She stops to grab some coffee before she starts her drive to pick her sister up, she didn't have to wait for long before Natasha came rushing out of the airport into her arms.

"Oh my god, I missed you so much," Natasha mumbles into Y/n's hair as she hugs her sister tightly. The moment was so touching that they both couldn't help but get teary, "I missed you so much more," Y/n mumbles back to her.

Natasha then slaps the back of Y/n's shoulder lightly with an accompanying teary chuckle, "then you should call more or better yet come fly out to see me asshole."

Y/n pulls away with her own watery chuckle as she wipes her face, "trust me if I could find time to fly out to you-you know I would in a heartbeat."

Natasha narrows her eyes at her before sighing in contentment, "I know you would. Fuck, come here." Natasha pulls her into another tight hug and after a few minutes they eventually drove off.

"So where are Thing 1 and Thing 2?" Natasha asks while she sips on Y/n's coffee making the latter roll her eyes playfully. "Well, I've been busy all week that I haven't been able to show them around so I thought a night out in the city last night would have been nice. It was an amazing night until Yelena ran her mouth and started stating how she can outdrink Pietro and I combined."

Natasha laughs in disbelief, "let me guess, Pietro told her she can't and they challenged each other."

"Uh huh and about two hours later, Yelena was blacked out drunk that I had to carry her back to the apartment," Y/n states as she shakes her head.

"And Pietro was basically acting sober?" Y/n nods at Natasha's guess. "What an idiot," Y/n couldn't help but laugh.

The two catch up with what's been going on in their personal lives as they drive to Y/n's apartment and Y/n was thankful that she ultimately decided to pick Natasha up on her own. This is what she needed, just normal friends catch up. No teasing, no innuendo, and she knows those types of comments will eventually come throughout the week but she's happy that it isn't how this reunion had started.

The redhead knows enough not to push on particular topics and she knows when the right moments are when to do so. Y/n is equally close with everyone in their friend group, but she does confine in Natasha in more detail including her actual emotional state regarding certain subjects. Natasha was someone Y/n knows she never has to hide from, someone she knows she can truly be 100 percent honest with and not feel like she ever has to walk on eggshells with.

...

Wanda Maximoff

"Pietro, you ready yet?" Wanda asks annoyingly as she knocks at her bathroom where her brother has been getting ready for the last hour. "What does a man have to do in the washroom to get ready for this long?"

Pietro suddenly opens the door with a smug face, "beauty takes time sestra, but it's okay I know you wouldn't know."

Wanda's jaw drops and watches as Pietro walks away from her, "excuse you little shit. Honestly, you've been hanging out with Yelena way too much. She's rubbing off on you."

Pietro chuckles, "I mean we did just get back from vacation so."

The twins start walking out of Wanda's apartment to the elevator, "oh yeah, where did y'all go again?"

"Visited Y/n," Pietro says nonchalantly as he walks into the elevator. The silver-haired man watches as his twin freezes for a moment and only snaps out of it when the doors started to close. Wanda squeezes in right before it closes, "you what?"

"Yelena and I went and visited Y/n for two weeks and Nat joined us for the second week and then the three of us flew back together." Pietro subtly watches his sister's reaction.

"Cool cool," Wanda mutters and Pietro raises an eyebrow, "cool?"

"Yeah, cool." Wanda says with a bite in her tone. "Okay," Pietro shrugs and exits out first once the doors were open again.

Wanda follows her brother while she tries to get a hold of her emotions. She's jealous at the fact that her other friends and her brother got to visit Y/n, meaning that they've been in constant contact with her while Wanda herself hasn't heard anything in months; and she wasn't about to be the one to reach out first.

Although, simultaneously she was still mad at Y/n for breaking her heart and a part of her just don't want to hear about her again. But underneath it all, she knows she just misses her ex-best friend truly.

Wanda never uttered a word again after that until the twins were walking to their parent's grave. It was the twins' parents' death anniversary and every year they come here to celebrate in the first half of the day. It felt weird this year because Y/n usually goes with them to visit their parents since the Maximoff's treated her like they were their own.

"Who? What? Where did those come from?" Wanda asks confused after she spots the nicely decorated potted flowers all around the graves. The twins walk a bit closer and Wanda's confusion only grows tenfold, who put those here? She never ordered flowers for their parents. Pietro lays the bouquet of flowers they brought themselves alongside one of the beautiful potted ones.

"Y/n sent them over," Pietro says softly as he sits on the grass and Wanda's confusion only grows from there, furrowing her eyebrows so deeply that it might just give her a headache. "She what?"

"Come on sestra, just because she isn't in the city doesn't mean she had forgotten about them. You know how much she cares for them and vice versa," Pietro tells the redhead.

"I know, I just, I didn't-" Wanda stutters scratching her eyebrows. The redhead can not for the life of her form a proper sentence due to all of the emotions and feelings rushing around her brain.

"You didn't think she would because in your eyes she's a villain. Yeah, maybe that's something you need to reflect on," Pietro mutters with an eye-roll. He knows the true story. He knows what Y/n had said and how wrong Wanda misheard her. He also knows about the phone calls that Wanda had made drunkenly and all the contents that were said in them. He was going to yell at Wanda for what she said but he realized that she never remembered them the day after.

Pietro can easily tell Wanda about all these and hopefully straighten her up a bit, make her feel better, and not waste so much time hating someone for saying and doing something they never did. But the silver-haired man knows that wasn't his place to say, Y/n also doesn't know that Wanda doesn't remember the phone calls and she also doesn't know that Wanda had completely misheard and misunderstood what she said.

But again, that was their problem and something that they need to figure out together therefore Pietro had always kept his mouth shut although sometimes his sister pushes the wrong buttons like right now.

"Excuse me?" Wanda asks shocked. Pietro sighs shaking his head, this probably was not the time for this, "nothing. This is something we can talk about another time."

"No, tell me what you meant."

Pietro whips his head towards Wanda and the redhead almost stumbles backwards at the fire in his eyes, something that was very rare. "Wanda. We're here for our parents. I'm not going to sit here and converse about this in front of them. So no. We will not be talking about this right now."

Wanda gulps and stares at his brother for a few seconds before sitting down on the grass beside him.

"Remember the first time mama made us watch The Dick Van Dyke show?" Pietro asks her after a few minutes of silence having no trace of fire in his tone.

...

A year after Y/n left New York

Wanda was enjoying her cozy Saturday night in, having The Dick Van Dyke show playing as background noise while reading a book when she heard her phone ping a new message. She quickly glances at her phone to see a message from Yelena on their friends' group chat.

Wanda softly places her book down on her lap to reach over for her phone on the coffee table and her glass of wine. She takes a sip of her glistening white wine while she waits for her phone to unlock to show the message.

The white wine that she was in the middle of swallowing almost choked her when the message came into her view. Wanda reads:

Yel: Guess who we stumbled upon at the airport?

The redhead moves her eyes under the message and sees a clear picture of Y/n with her suitcase.

Y/n's back.

»»————-　♛　————-««

🏷️: @nats-dreamland @marvelwomen-simp @togrowoldinv @maia-lightwoood @when-wolves-howl @wandanatvoid @ilovehotactresses @onetruwhore @strangegardencreatortaco @sadonism @mr-m-murdock @sayah13 @natslilangel @wandasbabe @froufrousnowman @picnicmic @justyourwritter69 @how-to-disappearrr @the-mute1 @wandsmxmff @nikkinss @abarelyexistentbeing @reginassweetheart @ratzyy @dandelions4us @oh-thats-cute @honey-sweet-hiraeth @yourfavdummy @tswiftlq

[lefthandarm-man]

Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanoff Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

[nataliasquote]

Is It All For Nothing? | n romanoff

Summary: You just want a friend. Is that so bad? How is it fair that everyone else gets one but you. What did you do that was so wrong?

Warnings: idk. just depressing stuff ig

Pairings: none. a small bit of Nat x reader but all platonic

wc: 1.3k

notes: I wrote this in 45 mins in one sitting. It’s written in a different pov than usual and idk if it even makes sense. I just typed and didn’t stop until I was done 🤷‍♀️ the idea just came to me and yeah :)

-⧗-

Frankly, being on the sidelines sucked. Everyone knew it yet no matter how many times someone engaged in small talk to be polite or proclaimed they were there to talk to everyone, somehow you were always left out.

It didn’t matter where you were, loneliness followed like a dormant disease. High school sucked, you were a nobody, but thankfully those years were in the past. But your fifteen year old self didn’t realise that your isolation would carry right on over into your adult life.

And sure, it wasn’t all bad. The nights spent chatting with new friends you’d made that day left you on an all time high, but that just made the fall that much harder. And when the low inevitably came, you could only laugh at yourself at your naivety, because why would things suddenly change? You weren’t someone people stuck around for.

Unfortunately, Shield agents were no different. Those in your cohort were nice enough to say hi in the hallway or invite you into group conversations. A couple even chatted with you over lunch. But you knew they only did it because they felt bad. You saw the difference in their demeanor; you were a spy for god’s sake. They were so much happier with their friends, and that didn’t include you, no matter how hard you tried to convince yourself it did.

There was one agent who’s attention toyed with you that little bit more. Natasha Romanoff was a couple of ranks higher, both in social and training status. But she was always kind, no matter what. You conversed whilst waiting for your training session, mainly her listening as you talked. She was sweet, despite her intimidating facade and before long she had you completely wrapped around your little finger.

For a month, you both chatted any chance you got. If you saw her in the cafeteria, you’d make a beeline for her table, smiling at the other agents as you sat down. She responded to you, her eyes holding yours as you spoke, seeming actually interested in what you had to say. She would joke with you, calling you out with a laugh which sent a flush to your cheeks. You didn’t care what she said, she was talking to you. That’s all that mattered. Maybe this was where your life changed for the better. Evenings that followed those days would be blissful and you would fall asleep with a smile on your face, feeling on top of the world all because of the redheaded Russian.

However, as the weeks went on, days would go by with no contact. At first you just thought she was going on more missions; that was her job after all. But then you’d see that flash of red hair in a meeting room or one of the agents talking about something Natasha had said earlier and it hit you sharply in the throat.

Was she just like everyone else? Playing the pity card, building you up only to leave you hanging once she got bored? Natasha didn’t seem like that kind of person, but had essentially placed her on a pedestal, so of course she could do no wrong. That was your downfall.

Emerging from a debrief with Maria Hill, you tucked a stack of files under your arm and stepped out into the hallway. And there she was, a soft smile on her lips. You reciprocated it and made eye contact, opening your mouth to speak. You hadn't spoken in a few days and you hated to admit it, but you missed her.

But Natasha clearly didn’t feel the same. Her eyes caught yours and then darted to the floor, her feet picking up the pace as she walked past. “I’m sorry Y/n, I’m busy today. We’ll talk later.”

Except she wasn’t busy. Because there she was, standing at the end of the hall laughing with another agent in your cohort. It shouldn’t have been, but it was like a punch to the stomach and you quickly turned around, retreating back into the room you’d left to avoid her seeing you watching her.

You knew that agent. They were friends, everyone saw it. And she was nice enough to you too, but jealousy coursed through your veins and turned you into a green eyed monster.

What did she have that you didn’t? Besides the ability to win Natasha over, obviously. Every single interaction you’d had with the redhead suddenly started replaying in your mind, frantically scanning to see what went wrong. Did you overstep? Were you too pushy? Too clingy? You just wanted a friend, was that so hard to understand? Was it so bad to want?

You thought about texting her, but decided against it. You didn’t want to know the answer. What if your worst fears were confirmed? That she only spoke to you out of pity, and quite frankly didn’t want anything to do with you.

It hurt. It really did. Countless times you wished that she was the one that would change your bad history of making friends. Because when you were around Natasha, nothing else mattered. The days of no contact slipped out of your mind. You’d forgive her for anything in a heartbeat… maybe that was the problem.

You thought the world of her. And she saw that. ‘Never meet your heroes’ that’s what they say, isn’t it? And maybe she wasn’t quite at hero status for you, but you looked up to her. Praising her work when she returned from a successful mission, commenting on the ingenious moves she made to lead her team to victory. She was everything you wanted to be as an agent, with one seriously important factor.

Everyone loved her.

Everyone loved her, and nobody knew you. She was the prize rose and you were behind, stuck in her shadow. They didn’t see you as anyone but the agent who sucked up to Natasha. They didn’t see how hard you worked, how many hours you trained, how much effort you put in. And they never would. Because it was too much. You were a try hard.

A try hard in a room full of effortless people.

Effortless just like that other agent was. She’d been rumoured to move up into Natasha’s ranks and onto her mission team, leaving you struggling in the lower levels. It felt almost childish, yearning after the attention of one single person. But no matter how hard you tried, or how casual you tried to be, Natasha would never see you as anything other than a fan girl.

You knew she was capable of giving you what you desired, you saw it with that other agent. The way they laughed together, developed inside jokes and anecdotal phrases that they brought up in group discussions. You saw the way Natasha’s eyes lit up at the mention of her name, how she gushed over her but also teased her at the same time. Their effortless banter had you choking back tears as you sat one table over, watching with blurry eyes.

You wanted that so badly it hurt.

But if you stopped trying, stopped reaching out, stopped lusting after the perfect friendship you so badly craved with her, would she notice? Or would you fade into the background, silently, without a word. Maybe she would be happy, now that you’re no longer bugging her.

Maybe it’s for the best.

[allthosepeopleilovetofangirlover]

Favourite assassins🫶

[sunnysideprincess]

There's nothing sweet about how Steve loves Tony.

He loves him viciously. Like a serpent loving a sweet lie. Like a bolt of lightning loving a lone standing tree. His love for Tony never simmers, only burns until Tony is left gasping and whimpering, raw and aching for more.

Steve loves Tony. It is easy to see. Enough that even their enemies take notice.

It worries the team. It worries Natasha when she sees Steve behead Ivan Vanko with the shield.

"That's a bit much," she notes when Captain America kicks Hammer's lose and limp body, wrinkling his nose in disgust when the man groans in pain.

Steve looks at her. And it's here she remembers him as the man who woke up like a beast. Roaring and snarling at everyone. Seeing enemies all around him until the numbness of grief settled in his veins. His eyes show the rage of a man who's lost one life, and is now on the verge of losing another.

"I thought you were with Potts."

The memory of a soft, subtle rose makes her smile.

"She's fine." Natasha made sure of it. "I'm here about Fury."

"Your boss, you mean."

"My boss," she agrees, checking for any stray henchman. "He's got something that could slow down Tony's... Condition."

"What's the hold up then," Steve doesn't ask. He just squares his shoulder, already catching in on her implications. It's part of the reason she's chosen to work with him for so long. They don't need to speak to know each other's motives.

In this instance, Steve already knows what she does. Fury won't help Tony. Not unless Tony Stark builds Shield something useful. Or becomes Shield's issued collar around Cap's neck.

"Tell me everything."

Years later, Clint would ask her what made her turn her back on Shield, on Phil. She would be looking at Pepper when she speaks. But her answer would be Steve Rogers and his untamed, unchecked wanting for a dying man.

[incorrect-marvel-because-why-not]

Steve: I think I just figured something out. I got to go. Natasha: Aren't you forgetting something? Steve: Uuh…hesitantly kisses Nat's forehead before running out. Natasha: No, pay your bill! Damn, who raised you?

[mistysgardenn]

is the romanogers to wandanat pipeline real

[bulkyphrase]

Romanogers Rec List

Here are a few of my favorite Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanoff stories!

Dreamland by quigonejinn (Teen And Up Audiences, 1,852 words)

Summary: After coming out of the ice, Steve Rogers has a recurring dream.

Threads, Frayed and Whole by Jaune_Chat (@jaune-chat) (Teen And Up Audiences, 2,360 words)

Summary: Alphas gift their omegas with trinkets to show they care. As a young operative, all Natasha could ever make was what she found. But how could that compete with what her fellow alphas were offering today?

Wander by @beezyland (Mature, 148,406 words)

Summary: Despite a wolf attack that ended in the death of his best friend, Steve still spends most of his younger years watching and drawing the wolves that live in the woods behind his house. One wolf with a coat tinged with red and strange green eyes watches him back. Ten years after leaving, Steve returns to care for his dying mother. That summer he meets Natasha, a mysterious bartender who has the same eyes as his wolf and secrets that will change everything he thought he knew about his hometown.

More below the cut!

For Whose Love I Rise and Fall by Yeetmeaway (Mature, 195,570 words)

Summary: In 1943 Hydra unleashes a deadly virus in its quest to create a new world order--one that turns its hosts into vampire-like creatures. 75 years later, humanity is on the brink of extinction, protected only by the hunters of SHIELD. Natasha has already lost so much to this--they are fighting a losing battle and everyone can feel it. But, for the first time in years SHIELD has hope, the possibility of a cure. What else will she give to bring an end to this nightmare?

How The Light Gets In by singalellaby (@captainmarvelling) (Teen And Up Audiences, 19,359 words)

Summary: Losing his sight may mean Steve can't fight alongside the Avengers, but he's still a super soldier. Natasha just needs to remind him of that.

The Things We Deserve by Not_You (Explicit, 1,598 words)

Summary: Natasha is having a bad day. Steve's enthusiastic, submissive masochism is helping.

what a smile means by victoria_p (musesfool) (@cacchieressa) (Mature, 4,475 words)

Summary: Natasha knows a lot of things Steve doesn't.

To Be Worthy by Yeetmeaway (Mature, 124,681 words)

Summary: Posing as the daughter of a Viking warlord, Natasha is betrothed to her enemy-- a young warlord of unearthly strength and power whom she is tasked with killing. But when she first lays eyes on her husband-to-be it quickly becomes clear that all of her intelligence about him was massively understated. Ordered not to abandon her mission and determined to go through with her plan, Natasha quickly draws the attention of her future husband’s warrior, a man she suspects may be a counterspy and who seems intent on learning everything about her. With the day of her wedding fast approaching, Natasha has everything to lose— her professional reputation, her life, and even her heart.

Cursed by Yeetmeaway (Mature, 22,694 words)

Summary: Six months after the battle of New York, a routine Avengers mission goes wrong after an encounter with the Enchantress. Natasha is private at the best of times, but she can no longer afford to be when it becomes clear that Steve has been cursed by dark magic. Reclusive and withdrawn, she is the last person she would've expected to help him, but she owes him a debt. As the curse begins to claim his body, Natasha can no longer hide her own darkness, nor can she deny the feelings that are growing within her heart. But if she and the Avengers can't find a way to help Steve break this spell, then she'll lose him forever.

Fated by Yeetmeaway (Teen And Up Audiences, 6,374 words)

Summary: Soulmates are a thing of fate-- two souls tied together in an unbreakable bond. But for Natasha, fate has seemingly chosen a different path. When it is discovered that her soulmate is an accursed, soulless beast, she is made into a Widow-- a monster slayer, those who fate has cruelly abandoned. What else can she do but embrace her destiny? But when a mission goes wrong, Natasha discovers that everything is not as it seems.

Another Person's Words by Ranni (Not Rated, 5,272 words)

Summary: Steve isn't the only one that doesn't catch all those movie references. Natasha plans it with the same grim intensity she brings to any mission, and where Tony would tease and Clint scoff, where Bruce would shake his head in disbelief, Steve is only grateful. She doesn’t like to be left out of things and he doesn’t like to be embarrassed. So many of the problems they have are unsolvable, but not this one—they can do this, can learn the language the others already know so easily.

Protective Package by Jaune_Chat (@jaune-chat) (Explicit, 3,576 words)

Summary: Steve Rogers would defend his friends with anything at his disposal, his strategy, his intelligence, his strength, his shield, his very life. Anything. This is the story of the five times he protected Natasha. With his penis. But things aren't quite as simple as that.

Unintended Side Effects by Margo_Kim (@andhumanslovedstories) (Teen And Up Audiences, 5,459 words)

Summary: Written for the Avengers kinkmeme: "Among the serum's many little quirks and oddities is that in addition to making his body stronger and his mind sharper, it also kind of cranked his libido up into overdrive. During the war it was easier to suppress/ignore because hey, being shot at is quite the boner kill, but now he's in the 21st century and though they still happen, battles are rather less regular. As a result, well; let's say that Little Steve is suddenly "standing at attention" when not explicitly ordered to do so." Steve respects Natasha as an agent and a person, but he also needs to stop looking at her when they are in public together because his body can't quite handle it and his uniform is very tight. The fact that Natasha's having entirely too much fun with Steve's noticeable problem doesn't help matters. Also available as a podfic read by ArwenLune (@primarybufferpanel).

American and Russian Relations in the 21st Century by Margo_Kim (@andhumanslovedstories) (Teen And Up Audiences, 2,548 words)

Summary: Written for the Avengers kinkmeme: An outsider perspective on Steve's new relationship. Darcy thinks there's something funny about Steve and Natasha's new relationship. Erik and Jane think she's crazy.

[lukreziaaa]

“I’m sorry, Nat. I can’t sign it.” “I know.” “Then what are you doing here?”

“I didn’t want you to be alone.”

[lihoromanoff]

IT’S CONFIRMED!!!! IT’S FUCKING SCARLETT!!!!

I CAN DIE HAPPY NOW!!!

[lesbianladysif]

Thor swooping in to save Nat (and other people)

[xoxoladyaz]

AU-gust, Day 9: Cleaning Crew

A/N: Avengers Crossover and allusions to smut, ahoy!

This ended up way hurt/comfort/fluff than I anticipated and there were almost no sexy times? And it was definitely the Avengers cockblocking Eddie and not the other way around so if there's still interest in that, I could see me writing THAT AU in the future! I just wanted Steve to be properly appreciated, you know? Anyways, happy AU-gust Day 9!

“This is the weirdest NDA I’ve ever seen.”

“Question, how many NDAs have you seen?”

Nancy Wheeler’s pinched face glared at Steve through his Starkphone. “Enough.” She rolled her eyes at Steve and restarted her perusal of the hefty contract Steve had emailed over to her (that she’d insisted on printing and making notes on, because even ten years removed from high school, Nancy Wheeler was thorough.) “There’s some things here regarding interpersonal relationships that seem a little unprecedented.”

“But?” Steve Harrington echoed, his eyebrows near his hairline.

“But you are dealing with the world’s first literal superhero team so these probably aren’t unreasonable requests,” she finished between gritted teeth.

“Great, so I can sign it then.”

“Steve,” Nancy sighed, and she pinched her nose between her eyes, “are you sure you want to do this? If it’s a matter of money - ”

“It’s not, Nance. Neither one of us has to work,” Steve argued back and hey, he wasn’t wrong. The government had been obscenely generous in their payouts after they’d finally defeated Vecna. And, okay, was it a little weird that instead of going to a fancy school or kickstarting his musical career or buying a weed farm that Steve rented a normal apartment and put the rest away into an investment fund? Maybe. Did he need to work, let alone work as a glorified cleaning service for the one percent? No, not at all.

But maintaining one of his (recently-divorced) mother’s properties had turned into a prosperous career because hey, it turns out all of those years spent cleaning up after the kids (and the interdimensional monsters they kept as pets) meant that he was, like, really good at cleaning. (And he was still incredibly insecure about his intelligence, or lack-thereof, and he didn’t want to be the only one who didn’t get into the dream school he applied for.)

And now he’d been personally asked – by Pepper Potts herself, of all people (who apparently played bridge with his mom?) – to take over the general care and upkeep of the personnel apartments at the newly re-christened Avengers Tower in New York City.

(Thank God he’d been out of town at one of Lucas’ basketball games when the whole attack happened; not that he wouldn’t have been willing to help but man, fighting monsters takes a toll when you’re not a superhuman. And he was only thirty.)

“This just feels like a cry for help, Steve. Do you really want to look after the world’s most difficult group of people?”

Steve stared at Nancy without blinking. “I babysat Henderson for years. I feel like I’m still babysitting Henderson.”

“I know, it’s just – I’m just worried that you’re not moving on, Steve.”

And, well, that hurt. Because sure, he didn’t have a doctorate like Robin or Dustin and he wasn’t playing professional sports like Lucas or spearheading global disability rights campaigns like Max or running a prosperous weed farm like Argyle or was part of the reporting and photography duo that was Nancy and Jonathan, nor was he part of a Grammy-winning rock band or a retired superhero or –

(It’s just, at the end of the day, Steve didn’t have really big dreams. After years spent fighting interdimensional monsters that liked to crawl their way out of walls, all of the other stuff – fame, fortune, money, a legacy – it didn’t really feel important anymore. All Steve wanted now, and truthfully, all he really wanted then, was a place to call home and people to belong to.

So honestly, it was really fucking rude of Nancy to judge him for just wanting that. And he was going to be working in close proximity with the Avengers of all people, like, how was that not success? Sure, he’d essentially be a live-in maid, but it wasn’t like he wasn’t doing important work.)

Steve didn’t say any of this to Nancy, of course; he didn’t need to. The looks on her face – shock, and then guilt – said enough.

“Steve - ”

“Thanks for your help, Nance,” he replied quickly, and then he hung up the phone.

(They were all split up now, they had been for years. And keeping them all together, staying together, being a family? That had been his dream for years.

But maybe it was time for a new dream now.

And maybe the Avengers Tower was the perfect place to start.)

/////

Working at the Tower meant that sometimes Steve felt like he was cleaning a frat house, mainly because the communal kitchen was usually covered in junk food wrappers and empty beer bottles and days’ old coffee mugs.

(“Trust me,” Pepper Potts had said drily the first time they’d had a check-in meeting, “this doesn’t come closeto a Tony Stark frat house party.”) 

Still, he was on time every day, kept to himself, and most importantly didn’t sell out any information to any of the many, many media outlets that sent him offers. That, along with the fact that apparently Steve had an obscenely high security clearance (thanks, Hawkins!) meant that he was asked to officially move into the staff quarters of Avengers Tower within his first month of work.

(Which had the added effect of him actually meeting the Avengers and, well, it was a little weird.

Because if Steve didn’t know any better, he’d say that they were flirting with him. Or, even worse, that they were staking some sort of claim, and that didn’t make sense, right?

Right?)

/////

1. Tony Stark

“Hey honeybun, how’s it hanging?”

“To the left,” Steve replied absentmindedly as he disinfected the industrial-grade espresso machine.

Someone choked behind him and – shit.

He’d just said that to his BOSS.

(His incredibly hot, incredibly wealthy, incredibly smart and powerful boss.

SHIT.)

“Mr. Stark!” Steve exclaimed as he spun to face his employer. “Mr. Stark, I am so, so sorry, that was so inappropriate - ”

“First of all, please for the love of god call me Tony,” Mr. Stark – Tony – ordered with a smirk as he leaned on the kitchen’s island. He was dressed in an old AC/DC tee that sent a pang through Steve’s heart because wowit reminded him so much of Eddie (although that’s where their style similarities ended, because Eddie always wore loose bottoms and Tony’s pants were always fitted to accentuate his ass.

NOT THAT STEVE HAD BEEN LOOKING.)

“And second of all,” Tony purred as he leaned further across the island, getting right up into Steve’s space, “don’t tease me if you aren’t going to follow through, sweetheart.”

Steve didn’t need a mirror to tell him that he was flushing bright red. “I – I - ”

“Mister Harrington, sir,” JARVIS spoke – which was a fully functional AI that Dustin would die to know about – “there is a call waiting for you on your personal line, a Mister Edward Munson.”

Speak of the devil.

“Oh,” Steve murmured, his face cooling off as quickly as it had heated and he spun around, hands shaking as he looked for a towel. “Yeah, let me just get a towel - ”

“JARVIS, put the call on my line,” he heard Tony order, and then a warm hand was at his back. “I’ve got this, handsome.”

Steve turned just in time to see Tony shoot him a wink and pick up his phone. “Eddie Munson, huh? I’ve heard a lot about you,” Tony started and then he was gone, disappearing out of the kitchen and towards his lab.

“I – JARVIS?”

“Mister Stark is a mystery to behold,” the AI replied with a sigh. “How about a glass of champagne?”

You know what? Fuck it.

“That sounds great, J.”

2. Steve Rogers

“ – and I said, ‘excuse me, but only one of us outsmarted some leftover commie bastards at the age of ten and it wasn’t you, Professor.’”

Steve snorted, listening as Erica detailed her most recent argument – and victory – with her prick of an international relations professor. (A few days after his weird interaction with Tony in the kitchen, he’d been granted access to accept personal calls in the main Avengers spaces, which meant that he had more time to catch up with his friends while cleaning which was a blessing because some of the dusting in this place? Took hours.)

“Doesn’t that break your NDA?”

“Please,” Erica snorted over the living room’s loudspeakers, “I’ve got Owens wrapped around my finger, just like you with a certain member of the one percent.”

“Sorry, what?” Steve paused mid-wipe, looking confusedly at the now-gleaming metallic coffee table in front of him. “What are you talking about?”

“Tony Stark, your knight in iron armor?” Erica replied in her best I’m-talking-to-an-idiot-right-now voice. “Or did you forget that he’s screening your calls?”

“He’s screening my what?”

“Please, we all heard about his little talk with the Nerd King,” she scoffed and oh yeah, he’d forgotten about that. (Honestly, he had no idea what those two had even talked about; when he asked Tony, the older man had changed the subject and ordered super fancy sushi instead.) “Now, if you had a bodyguard like that back at Starcourt, maybe you wouldn’t have gotten your ass kicked by the Russians.”

“What Russians?”

Steve didn’t scream, but he might have let out a high-pitched noise of surprise at the sound of Captain America’s voice. He turned around to find Steve Rogers standing at attention in the living room, his eyes glaring at the speakers overhead.

“Steve,” Erica’s voice echoed slowly, “am I hearing Captain America right now?”

“Just Steve Rogers, ma’am,” the tall blonde replied automatically.

“And just how long have you been there, Just Steve Rogers?”

“Long enough. Now, what is this about the Russians?” He asked, and his piercing blue eyes dropped onto Steve’s face and his heart was beating fast because he was nervous and for no other reason.

“Seriously? How do you not know? Haven’t you read Steve’s file?” Erica asked incredulously and okay, this conversation needed to be done immediately.

Piercing blue eyes grew shocked and Captain Rogers looked, well, sick to his stomach. “You have a file?”

“Okay!” Steve jumped up before this could spiral any further out of hand. “Erica, it was great talking to you, I’ll call you later, uh, Captain Rogers - ”

“Please, call me Steve.”

“Right, Steve, there’s nothing to be, uh, worried about - ”

“She said Russians,” Cap pointed to the ceiling, “so there’s definitely something to be worried about. Does Tony know about the Russians?”

“I’m sorry, did somebody say my name?” Tony popped his head into the room because of course he was also nearby.

“Did you know about this?”

“I know a lot of things, Cap, you’re going to have to be more specific.”

“Did you know that Steve was attacked by Russians?”

“Steve was what?!”

(Steve was then treated to the sight of Iron Man and Captain America reading his security file, staring at him in shock, and then stomping off to do something about their fury? The last part of that entire thing didn’t make sense, but JARVIS sent him some whiskey so hey, it could have been worse.

And if he let Captain Rogers tuck an extra blanket around him during movie night, well, that was just his business.)

3. Natasha Romanoff (and Clint Barton)

“I heard you lost a fight with some Russians.”

“JESUS!” Steve startled, barely stopping himself from dropping Tony’s mother’s expensive China all over the floor. (The porcelain set hadn’t been looked at in years and Pepper wanted to use it for the next investors meeting, so of course this is when the infamous Black Widow approached him.)

“Okay, first of all,” he said after he had set down the dishware and turned to face the smirking redhead, “I didn’t lose the fight, I knocked one out.”

“And then you got surrounded, captured, and were tortured for a total of two hours in a hidden bunker,” she finished. (How did she get her eyebrow to quirk like that? And why did he feel like she was flirting with him but also being mean?)

(And how could he get that skill?)

“I – yeah, you’re not wrong about that,” Steve muttered, glancing away from Natasha. “At least we all made it out alive. And we survived the whole Hawkins earthquake thing.”

Natasha snorted and murmured something under her breath that sounded like Russian but also sounded like metal and frankly didn’t make a lot of sense. She cleared her throat and spoke up and, well, whatever she said before must not have been important. “It’s a good thing you have us to train you.”

“Yeah,” he murmured absentmindedly. Then – 

“Wait, what?”

Which is how Steve started spending two hours out of every afternoon “training” with Natasha in the official Avengers’ sparring room. Honestly, he wasn’t sure how much good it was doing, given that “training” mainly consisted of Natasha throwing him around the room and giving him bruises.

(Okay, that he was into, and she knew it too, judging by the wink she’d send him every time he headed off to the showers.)

After a few weeks, when she’d deemed him “competent” enough, she had Clint Barton start “assisting” as well, meaning there were two of them beating him up now which meant twice the embarrassment and twice the bruises.

(And twice the amount of time jerking off in the shower.)

(This was really starting to get out of hand.)

4. Thor and Bruce Banner

“This is really starting to get out of hand.”

“What is?” Robin asked as she poured the last of her Flaming Hot Cheeto dust into her mouth. She was the first person Steve had been able to secure a visitor’s pass for; Dustin was next on the list, followed by Max and Erica and then the rest of the gang (although according to JARVIS they were running into some sort of problem with Eddie’s pass, which could take up to an additional two months? He didn’t fully understand it, JARVIS had told him during breakfast a few days ago and he’d gotten distracted by Natasha throwing knives at Clint’s apple strudel and Steve accidentally breaking the toaster again.)

Steve grimaced as he watched her lick her fingers. “You mean aside from your Cheeto addiction?”

“Hey, this isn’t an addiction, I can stop any time,” she replied with a snort before tossing her empty bag at Steve. 

(Gross.)

“Sorry, what were you saying dingus? Something about things getting out of hand?”

“I don’t know, I just,” Steve set down his feather-duster (that he hadn’t even been using, he’d just been tossing it around like his old ice cream scooper) and got close enough to Robin so she could hear his whisper, “I might be reading things wrong, but I’m almost getting the feeling that they’re into me or something?”

Robin frowned. “Who, Eddie?”

“Eddie?” Now it was Steve’s turn to be confused. “No, the Avengers.”

“The AVENGERS?” Robin squeaked just as the door to the elevator banks opened. Steve and Robin whipped around to see Thor enter the main atrium with Dr. Banner on his heels.

“Steve!” Thor shot him a blinding smile and strutted over. Upon reaching Steve he wrapped him up in a hug and lifted him off the ground.

“Hey Thor!” Steve wheezed, trying to pat what he could of Thor’s back.

“How I have missed your countenance, my friend,” Thor boomed, and then he was setting Steve back on the ground – 

And kissing him on the lips. 

Thor leaned back and beamed, ignoring the fact that Steve was openly gaping at him. “It is good to be home.”

“Yeah? Yeah,” Steve breathed before shooting a quick look at Robin who looked completely and totally dumbfounded.

“And you must be the Lady Robin!” Thor said, turning his mega-watt smile upon Robin who flushed bright red. “Steve has told us of your exploits and your intellect. You would do well amongst the heroes of Asgard.”

“Thank you? I mean, thank you,” Robin squeaked.

(If Steve wasn’t in a state of complete and utter shock, he might have laughed at her, but he couldn’t move.)

“I have also seen the flag of your people,” Thor continued, like he didn’t notice Robin’s utter embarrassment, “and I have a lovely friend named Val who is searching for a paramour of her own. Do you think you would be interested? I could arrange a meeting.”

“Val. Val? As in - ”

“Valkyrie, yes,” Dr. Banner finally cut in sheepishly. “Also, hi, I’m Dr. Banner.”

Robin could only muster up a wave.

“Uh, hi, hi Bruce,” Steve shook his head, forcing himself to get it together it was only a kiss.

“Hi Steve, good to see you,” Bruce replied, and now he was bright red and well apparently Thor was the only person who wasn’t blushing right now and Steve needed to get a handle on this stat.

“That would be great, Thor!” Steve cut in, saving Robin from having to respond. “Robin’s going to be in town for a few more days.”

“Wonderful!” Thor said, turning back to beam at Steve. “I shall invite Val for dinner tomorrow but for now, I shall allow you to return to your revelry. Lady Robin,” he said with a bow towards Robin and then, turning to face Steve, he shot Steve a smug wink. “Steve.” And with that Thor was gone, headed towards Tony’s lab with a still-blushing Bruce Banner hot on his heels.

Steve turned to stare at Robin.

Robin stared back at Steve.

“Holy shit.”

“Holy shit.”

5. The Team

Surprisingly – or unsurprisingly – Robin’s date with Val had gone really, really well; in fact, it had gone so well that Robin transferred her graduate credits to NYU in a matter of days and moved into the Tower as well.

(“Steve. Steve. She’s a literal alien warrior goddess. Who cares where I work? I don’t even need to work.”

Still, the NYU transfer went incredibly smoothly, so smoothly that Steve confronted a certain genius billionaire playboy philanthropist about it. Tony had denied any input and distracted him with more sushi and a thorough tour of his sportscars which had ended up lasting for hours.)

Anyways, with Robin now living as an occupant of the Tower and the rest of the Avengers fully settled in and in agreement on a chore chart, Steve was starting to wonder just why he was still employed; like, what purpose was he serving? He really did try to stay on top of the cleaning, but the others were pitching in almost constantly, and it was a miracle if he was responsible for cooking even one meal a day.

“I just don’t get it,” he finally said to Robin on a particularly hot day in July. They were the sole occupants of the Tower’s rooftop infinity pool (as the Avengers proper were spending the day in a series of meetings), so this was the closest Steve was going to get to having a private conversation with Robin.

(Like, he was really, really glad that Val was so obviously head over heels for his best friend, but it definitely cut down on his and Robin’s cuddle time.)

“Don’t get what, dingus?”

Steve shrugged and ran a wet hand through his drying hair. “I don’t know, why I’m still here? I mean, they aren’t really using me as a cleaner anymore, and I mean, Bruce is a way better cook than me and he’s pretty much taken over so, like, what am I even doing here?”

Robin turned and pushed up her sunglasses so they were making eye contact. “Seriously? You’re serious right now.”

Steve nodded.

“You really don’t see it?”

“See what?”

Groaning, Robin slid her sunglasses back onto her face and turned back towards the horizon. “I’m not going to be the one to spell it out for you, dingus. You’re going to have to do this on your own. Or, better yet, why do you just ask?”

“Uh, maybe because I don’t want to get fired?”

(Robin shoved his head underwater at that which, frankly? Was incredibly rude.

He got his revenge later by knocking her into the pool after she’d finally dried off.)

+ 1 Bucky Barnes

Being fresh off of a highly-advanced plane-ship-thing from Wakanda meant that Steve hadn’t seen a whole lot of James “Bucky” Barnes. He’d sat next to him at dinner a few times, shared a couch during their re-watch of Game of Thrones, even sparred a bit at Natasha’s direction during Steve’s “training,” but they hadn’t really talked, which made the fact that after Steve’s un-helpful swim with Robin, he found said super soldier waiting for him in the hallway outside of his bedroom.

“Bucky, hi,” Steve nodded, rubbing his towel across the back of his neck. “Sorry, did you need something? Is there a problem with - ”

“No problems, doll, I just wanted to have a chat,” the dark-haired man purred, and Steve?

He felt his stomach tangle up in knots.

“A-about what, exactly?”

Bucky hummed and uncrossed his arms, the vibranium arm shimmering under the light. “Well, a little birdie told me you had some questions about what your place is here,” he said, a playful sparkle in his eye. “And,” Bucky stepped closer and backed Steve up until Steve was leaning against the door to his own apartment, “since it seems that my teammates haven’t made your position entirely clear, I thought I would take matters into my own hands.”

Steve didn’t even get a sound out before Bucky was surging forward, planting the sort of kiss on Steve that he knew he’d never recover from because for as forceful and passionate as it was, it was gentle too: the way Bucky’s cybernetic arm wrapped around Steve’s back and help him up; the way his other hand cupped the side of Steve’s face; the way Bucky hummed, like Steve’s lips were the sweetest thing he’d ever tasted; 

The way he lifted Steve up and kicked open the door.

“I – I - ” Steve panted out as the door swung shut behind them. “I still - ”

“You’re home, doll,” Bucky murmured against Steve’s lips. “That’s what you are.”

And, well.

Steve couldn’t not kiss him then.

(And he couldn’t not give him every piece of himself in return underneath his silken sheets.)

Four Months Later

“Okay, now this is the weirdest NDA I’ve ever seen.”

Jonathan snorted from across the room as he fiddled with his camera. 

“Hey, you were the one that wanted the exclusive,” Steve replied. “I could have told you it would be more intensive.”

“Yeah, yeah, and who’s fault is that?” Nancy teased with a glimmer in her eye. “I’m not the househusband here.”

“Umm excuse me, that’s my job?” Robin piped up from her spot on Val’s lap. “Steve is obviously the trophy wife.”

“Hey!” Steve exclaimed, but then a pair of godly arms wrapped around his waist, a cybernetic arm wrapped around his shoulders, and a pair of expensive lips pressed a hot kiss to his cheek.

“Best trophy wife a guy could ask for,” Tony crooned in his ear and then laughed at Steve’s blush.

(His partners weren’t the good guys, they were evil.)

“Dude, Eddie would shit a brick if he saw this,” Jonathan said with another snort.

“Oh, how is - ”

“Who do you speak of? I am not familiar,” Thor cut Robin’s question off loudly, his thundering voice vibrating up and down Steve’s back.

“I think he said Freddie - ”

“Oh, like Freddy Krueger – Cap, we need you to watch A Nightmare on Elm Street - ”

“ – after the shoot! Do you think Tony will order us sushi again?”

“ – Steve first, Steve, are you in the mood for sushi?”

Steve felt Nancy nudge him, and he turned to see her smiling. “Hey. I’m proud of you.”

“Thanks, Nance,” Steve smiled back.

“It’s good to finally be home.”

[the-great-kraken]

not to come on this website and talk about the mcu in 2024 but. can you imagine watching in chronological order - as someone who has no idea about these movies - and reaching black widow's end credits.

people like to say it would ruin it because spoilers, but honestly, i think it would be a gut-wrenching way to experience it. you know natasha is going to die, and as far as you know, clint barton will kill her. civil war just layed the seeds of anger in the avengers, and then they didn't see each other for years.

the next time we see clint, his family is dead. he is ronin, and he is hunting killers. he has not seen natasha since they faced each other at the airport. natasha didn't save his family. you think you know how this ends, but it doesn't.

then you finally reach vormir, and all of a sudden, it makes sense. clint would never kill natasha - not unless she made him.

[captainjimothycarter]

Sad Thought:

Steve must've been eager to tell Natasha that he saw Peggy in her office and that she kept the photo of pre-serum him. He must've wanted to gush to her about how beautiful she was, how he almost broke and touched her.

He must've wanted to confess all the complicated feelings raising in him

He never got to

[haveihitanerve]

“If this was your last birthday party you were ever gonna have, How would you celebrate it?” 

This scene. (sry lots of iron man on the brain recently) Nat knows. She knows. She knows that he’s dying, she knows he has problems. She knows. She was given this task by Fury, and given a briefing. The same briefing Tony was given when Fury told him he doesn't qualify. Selfish, self absorbed, doesn't play well with others. She expects him to be like any other man. But, hes not. He genuinely is interested in her and sure, he makes a few comments, but he immediately brushes back up, “thats not professional.” “sorry.” *puts distance between them*. And right now? Here? With her alone? He doesn't make a move. He makes himself vulnerable. Reveals something he, by all accounts, shouldn't. Hes been keeping it from the love of his life, his best friend, everyone. And Nat? Whats her protocol for this? Tell him its a dumb idea. Tell him to call it off. Tell him the truth. Call Fury. Instead, what does she do? 

“Id do whatever I wanted to do. With whoever I wanted to do it with.”

Lots of people took this as an invitation. Her saying, “i see you find me attractive. Ill the person you do it with.” But its not. Its her advice, genuine. (at least thats how i interpreted it) But Tony doesn't do that. Because, at the end of the day, he hates himself. He doesn't listen to her, instead he throws a party on par with the ones he used to do before he met Pepper, and gets rip roaring drunk, doesn't invite Pepper or Rhodey, and spends it with Natasha. Because its what people expect him to do, because he doesn't want to be a burden on Pepper and Rhodey and those he loves and is choosing them over him. 

Anyway this whole long thing was just to say that while Tony clearly distanced himself from the Avengers during Civil War/Endgame, he attends/throws Nat a birthday party every single year after the snap/after Iron Man 2, and always gets her a present. Hes maybe not the person she wants to spend it with, but he at least lets her know hes there. And Nat always come to him on his birthday, or if shes away, sends him a card and a small gift.

[funnyincorrectmcu]

Nat: Every zoo is a petting zoo unless you’re a coward. Clint: … Clint: You concern me.